Ammunition-belt



No. 623,243. Patented Apr. l8, I899.

w F. m. GARLAND.

AMMUNITION BELT.

(Application filed June 80, 1898.)

(No Model.)

' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE;

FRANK M. GARLAND, OF NE\V HAVEN, CONNECTICUT.

AMMUNITION-BELT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 623,243, dated April18, 1899.

Application filed June so, 1898.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FRANK M. GARLAND, a citizen of the United States,residing at New Haven, in the county of New Haven and State ofConnecticut,have invented certain new and useful Improvements inAmmunition-Belts, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a flexible belt which has clips fortemporarily holding cartridges that are to be conveyed by the belt tothe mechanisms which will feed them to the barrels of an automaticmachine-gun.

The object of the invention is to provide a simple and inexpensiveflexible belt which will surely hold and positively convey cartridges insuch manner that they can be accurately fed to two parallel barrelsplaced in juxtaposition in an automatic machine-gun.

The embodiment of the invention which is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings has a flexible body of indefinite length that is providedalternately upon opposite sides with plates that are bent to form teeththat will mesh with the teeth of the feed-wheel and to form spring-clipsthat will hold the cartridges, so that as the belt is advanced upwardlybetween the barrels of the automatic gun for which the belt is designedthe feed mechanism can pick one cartridge from one side and feed it toone barrel and can then pick the following cartridge from the oppositeside-and feed it to the other barrel, as more particularly hereinafterdescribed, and pointed out in the claims.

Figure 1 of the drawings shows a full-size edge view of a portion of anammunition-belt that embodies the invention, constructed for temporarilyholding and conveying cartridges that are provided with half-poundprojectiles.

Fig. 2 is a view of one face of the same section of belt. Fig. 3 is aview of one of the plates that are secured to the opposite faces of theflexible body of the belt before the plate is bent to shape, and Fig. 4is a view of one of the plate-fastening studs.

The bodyl of the belt, which can be formed any desirable length, may bemade of leather or webbing or any other light material that has suitableflexibility and strength.

The clip-plates 2 are secured to this flexible body alternately uponopposite faces, so that they will hold the cartridges upon opposite ISerial lie-684,790. (No model) sides of the belt. These plates arepreferably stamped to shape insingle pieces from a strip of sheet-steelor hard brass, but, of course, other spring metal may be employed. Theends of the plates are given S-shaped bends 3 to provide the necessaryflexibility, and are then curved outwardly to form the cartridgegrippingclips 4. The tongues 5, that project from the edges of the plates, arebent at the widest parts of the openings 6, made through them and foldedover so as to lie upon the opposite face of the flexible body from theplate proper. The ends .of' the tongues are secured to the plates on theopposite faces of the flexible body by inserting studs 7 intoperforations provided and heading them over. The openings 6 are soshaped that when the tongues are bent and the plates are secured inposition at suitable distances apart the portions 8 of the plates extendbeyond the edges of the flexible body equal distances from each otherand form rack-teeth that will correctly engage with the teeth on thefeedwheel of the automatic gun with which the belt is to be employed.

The clip-plates may be fastened in position on the flexible body by asimple rivetingmachine that will set the studs first on one face andthen on the other face as the body is passed along, and as the belt willbe fed along by the teeth on the edges of the plates that hold thecartridges the cartridges will be accurately presented to the mechanismwhich picks them from the belt and feeds them to the barrels.

These belts, with the spring-clips filled with cartridges, are folded upand packed into cases. In the automatic gun arranged for this belt theflexible body, with .the springclips filled with cartridges, is drawn upfrom its case between the barrels, and the loadingfingers of the gunmechanism easily pick the cartridges from the spring-fingers on oppositesides alternately, the clips readily opening to permit the release ofthe cartridges on the side for the barrel that is ready to be loaded atthe proper time.

This belt is simple to manufacture, the body may be formed of ordinarymaterials,

and the spring-clips stamped from common stock. A belt constructed inthis manner permits the arrangement, in a gun having 2. Anammunition-belt consisting of a flexible body of indefinite length withspring-clips projecting at intervals from opposite faces of the body andfeed-teeth projecting at intervals from opposite edges of the body, sub--stantia-l1y as specified.

3. An ammunition-belt consisting of a flexible body of indefinite lengthand plates shaped to form feed-teeth and spring-clips secured to thebody with the teeth projecting from the edges and the clips projectingalternately from opposite faces,substantially as specified,

. FRANK M. GARLAND.

Witnesses:

H. R. WILLIAMS,

E. J. HYDE.

